By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Olympiacos forced Barcelona in its worst offensive performance this season to take a 69 – 60 win on the road and extend its EuroLeague record to 8 – 5.
This was the fourth defeat in a row and seven overall for Barcelona that is now out of the playoff zone in the standings.
Reds center Nikola Milutinov registered a career-high in PIR with 36 by scoring 18 points, grabbing 14 rebounds (also career-best) and notching two blocks in 27:12 minutes. He also won eight fouls by his opponents who were unable to compete against him on both ends.
“We played like a team for 40 minutes. And we deserved this win,” Milutinov said in the post-game flash interview.
While Olympiacos put on a powerful defensive display overall, it wasn’t until the third quarter that they made their efforts translate into a solid lead. The Greek side moved the ball efficiently, found open looks that made into baskets and “fed” Milutinov inside the paint abundantly for the latter to make damage. Barcelona fell behind by 12, 35 – 47, since it lacked offensive solutions to keep up with its opponents.
Victor Claver (13 points) and Pierre Oriola (10 points, six rebounds), along with Adam Hanga (9 points) tried to make their team competitive but their efforts weren’t enough.
Backed also by Vassilis Spanoulis (14 points, three assists), Nigel Williams-Goss (10 points, four assists, four rebounds) and Zach LeDay (10 points), Olympiacos preserved an advantage around double figures in the fourth quarter and never felt threatened by the Blaugrana.